If you're here, you probably already love Loop Habit Tracker — or you've heard how good it is and gone to install it, only to find it's Android-only. That's the honest starting point for any Loop Habit Tracker alternative: Loop is free, open-source, offline, private, and genuinely excellent, and it does not run on iPhone. This post isn't "here's something better." It's "here's the closest thing in spirit, on the platform Loop skips."
Let's be clear about what init.Habits is and isn't, because Loop fans will care. init.Habits is a commercial app: a free tier plus a paid Pro upgrade, and it is not open source. Loop is free forever and its code is public. If those two things are the reason you love Loop, init.Habits won't replace them — and you should know that before reading further.
What init.Habits does share with Loop is the feel: minimalist, private, stats-forward, no social layer, no nagging. On iPhone, that combination is hard to find, and it's the reason this comparison exists.
At a glance
| init.Habits | Loop Habit Tracker | |
|---|---|---|
| Platform | iPhone (synced web coming) | Android only |
| Price | free tier; Pro €3.99/mo, €24.99/yr, €34.99 | free, forever |
| Open source | no | yes (GPLv3) |
| Account | none needed; optional sync or Sign in with Apple | none — fully offline |
| Full features cost | Pro subscription or lifetime | nothing |
| Stats (free) | GitHub-style heatmap + full history | habit score + charts |
| Streak protection | earned shields + vacation + sick mode | none |
| Tracking modes | checkbox, counter, number + unit, timer, Apple Health | yes/no + measurable |
| Themes | 23 editor palettes + custom editor | dark + accent colors |
| Ads / tracking | none | none |
The table isn't a scoreboard. Loop wins the two rows that matter most to its fans — free and open-source — and always will. What init.Habits offers is everything else Loop does well, running on an iPhone.
What init.Habits keeps from Loop's spirit
The things people praise Loop for, init.Habits is built the same way around:
- Minimalist and fast. No feed, no coaching, no clutter. Open it, log, close it.
- Private. Works fully offline with no account, same as Loop. If you turn on sync it's anonymous by default; nothing is sold or shared.
- Stats-forward. Loop is loved for its charts and habit-strength score. init.Habits leads with a GitHub-style heatmap and full history on the free tier — the same "show me the data, honestly" instinct.
- No dark patterns. No ads, no upsell popups, no manufactured guilt.
What's different — and the honest trade
Two real gaps, stated plainly:
It costs money. Loop's full feature set is free. init.Habits gives you a genuinely usable free tier (10 habits, full stats, the heatmap), but timers, Apple Health, sync and all 23 themes sit behind Pro — €24.99/year or €34.99 once. If "I never pay for a habit tracker" is a rule, Loop keeps it and init.Habits breaks it.
It's closed source. Loop's code is on GitHub under the GPL; anyone can audit or fork it. init.Habits is proprietary. It's private and exports your data as JSON so you're never locked in, but you can't read the source. For some Loop users that's a dealbreaker, and that's a legitimate line to hold.
What init.Habits adds on iPhone
Since you're comparing, here's where init.Habits goes beyond Loop's feature set — on the platform Loop can't reach:
- Earned shields. Streak freezes you earn every 7 days and spend automatically on a miss, plus vacation and sick modes. Loop has no streak protection; a gap is a gap. The shield rules explain the earning.
- More tracking modes. A real pomodoro timer and habits that auto-complete from Apple Health, on top of checkboxes and measurable habits.
- Editor themes. 23 palettes — Dracula, Nord, Gruvbox and more — because it's a terminal-style tracker at heart, which Loop fans tend to appreciate.
None of that makes init.Habits "better than Loop." It makes it a fuller app on iPhone that still feels like the thing you're missing.
Where Loop wins
Not a token list — these are real:
- Free, forever. No tiers, no Pro, nothing gated.
- Open source. Public code under the GPL, auditable and forkable.
- Fully offline, no account. Nothing leaves the device unless you export it.
- Android. The one init.Habits can't answer at all.
- A proven, huge user base and years of steady, community-friendly development.
If any of those is the reason you use Loop, stay on Loop. This post is only for the case where you can't — because you're on iPhone.
Moving from Loop to iPhone
If you switched phones and left Loop behind, the move is quick:
- Loop exports your data (CSV/DB); keep it as an archive — there's no direct importer.
- Recreate your habits in init.Habits. The free 10 slots cover most Loop lists.
- Backfill recent days so your history and streaks don't start empty.
You'll lose Loop's open-source guarantee. You'll gain a native iPhone app with widgets, shields and themes. Whether that trade is worth it is exactly the honest question this post is trying to leave you with.
FAQ
Is there a version of Loop Habit Tracker for iPhone?
No. Loop Habit Tracker is Android-only (Google Play and F-Droid) and there's no official iOS build. init.Habits is the closest option in spirit on iPhone — minimalist, private and stats-forward — but it's a separate, commercial app, not a port of Loop.
Is init.Habits free and open-source like Loop?
No. Loop is free forever and open-source (GPL). init.Habits has a free tier but charges for full features, and it's closed-source. It does export your data as JSON, so you're not locked in, but if free and open-source are your requirements, Loop meets them and init.Habits doesn't.
Why would a Loop user switch to init.Habits?
Usually one reason: they moved to an iPhone and Loop won't run there. init.Habits keeps the parts Loop users like — clean, private, data-forward — and adds iPhone-native touches like shields, a pomodoro timer and editor themes.
Does init.Habits have Loop's habit-strength score?
Not that exact algorithm. init.Habits shows a GitHub-style heatmap, streaks, and full completion stats for free, which cover the same "how am I really doing" question in a different visual form.